Technical Profile

MicroStation 95 PCfor Intel-compatible DOS, Microsoft Windows, Windows 95, Windows NT and IBM OS/2 Warp, DEC Alpha Windows NT and PowerPC Windows NT

MicroStation 95Be as Productive as You Can Be.

MicroStation 95 is a full-featured, productivity-enhancing 2D/3D computer-aided design product for drafting, design, visualization, analysis, database management, and modeling. It has a consistent, easy-tolearn look and feel on all of the platforms that it runs on, including PCs, Apple computers, and UNIX workstations. MicroStation 95 is especially useful for design teams and workgroups who share data. It is used by architects, cartographers, engineers, drafters, and others whose success relies on computer-aided design to achieve very high levels of productivity. MicroStation 95s workgroup-oriented approach ensures that your project team members work efficiently and in concert with one another, regardless of your hardware platform mix. Powerful 2D production drafting tools and a comprehensive 3D surface modeling and visualization environment help you turn ideas into reality. And an underlying event-driven architecture means you can use routines and add-on applications effortlessly.

Software Thats Easy to Work With.

MicroStation 95 is designed to work the way you want to work. Microsoft Office guidelines were used to design the user interface. Easily customizable pull-down menus, dialog boxes, and icon-based, tearoff tool boxes that are resizable and dockable provide clear communication between you and the software. MicroStation 95s non-modal environment lets you change tool settings or view parameters in the middle of a command sequence and continue working without restarting the command. View controls let you dynamically rotate your 3D models. You can work in up to eight active, resizable views spread over two monitors to see your design from all angles as you work.

MicroStation 95Bentleys rock-solid upgradeis both refined and supercharged, so you get improved handling and better performance.

MicroStation 95 lets you customize the working environment, or workspace, to suit individual, project, site, organization, or discipline-specific needs and specifications. Template workspaces are delivered with MicroStation 95 for architecture, civil engineering, mechanical drafting, and mapping disciplines. You can make the design files, cell libraries, and other information you need for a project available by default. MicroStation 95s default user interface can even be simplified for new users or users who are transitioning from other CAD packages. Comprehensive online Help puts MicroStation 95s documentation at your fingertips. Search on key words and topics. Even leave the Help dialog box open while you work to provide on-context detail or guidance with MicroStations functionality and tools. Its an effective way to speed the learning process and increase productivity.

MicroStation BASICA New Level of Customization.

Workspace streamlines specific tools for architect

MicroStation BASIC automates repetitive tasks, boosting productivity.

MicroStation 95 provides user-level programmability through MicroStation BASIC. With MicroStation BASIC, there is now a simple way to improve your productivity by automating often-used sequences of operations without learning highlevel language development skills or being limited by legacy languages. In its simplest form, a MicroStation BASIC macro drives MicroStation 95 in much the same way a user does. Among other things, tools and view controls can be selected, key-ins can be entered, dialog boxes can be manipulated, and elements can be modified. An intuitive record/playback tool, a robust editing environment, and an easy-to-use dialog builder are all part of MicroStation BASIC. You can also write MicroStation BASIC macros for MDL applications. Once completed, the MicroStation BASIC program, either the source code or the binary file, can then be used on all supported MicroStation 95 platforms.

Making the Job Easier for the Drafting Professional.

MicroStation 95 has a comprehensive set of tools for the drafting professional. AccuDraw* tremendously streamlines drawing by combining the speed of a pointing device with the precision of keyboard entry. When activated, AccuDraw integrates with MicroStation 95 tools in a way that is specific to each tool and anticipates the next step, allowing you to concentrate on the task at hand. SmartLine is a tool for efficiently creating composite elements. When you activate the Place SmartLine tool and begin drawing, SmartLine understands what type of element to create. Custom line styles are user-defined intelligent line types for using complex display symbology in designs. You define various display characteristics such as width, offset, dash/dot lengths, and graphic symbols. Line style definitions can include text characters and even shared cells, and are stored in external, binary-compatible resource files, increasing efficiency by reducing design file size

and letting you globally edit symbology. Multi-lines, or multiple parallel lines, can be used to efficiently represent walls, ductwork, or piping in a drawing. Multi-lines can include up to 16 parallel lines, each with its own line style, color, weight, and level. MicroStation 95 features truly associative dimensions, patterns, and hatching. Dimensions can be directly associated to the graphics they describe, and are updated automatically when the graphics are modified. Likewise, patterns and cross-hatching can be associated to their bounding graphics so they are automatically regenerated when the boundaries are changed. Boolean unions, differences, and intersections can be used to quickly define hatching areas for complex collections of shapes. interface and adds disciplinegraphers, engineers and drafters. Settings groups provide a simple way to automate tool settings and selection. Selecting a user-defined group component, such as a cell, can automatically set the target graphic parameters, select the cell from a cell library, and start the Place Cell tool. The cell is displayed dynamically as you position it in the drawing, letting you know youve selected the correct symbol. Pre-defined dimension and multiline definitions, based on industry standards such as ISO, ANSI, and DIN, are stored in settings groups for easy recall. Dimension-driven design lets you apply constraints to graphics. You can define geometric relationships between elements, such as tangency of a line to a point on a circle. Or you can constrain elements dimensionally or with equations. Once constraint relationships have been established, variables can be assigned to dimensioned graphics and the whole saved as a cell. The variables can then be defined dynamically as the cell is placed. Dimension-driven cells are an efficient way to define and store families of parts and symbols that differ only dimensionally. Drawing Composition helps you organize your designs into efficient, readable drawings. 3D models can be unfolded into standard, orthographic views that will automatically update when the model is changed. In addition, there are options to display and plot various hidden line or visible edge representations of attached models. Bidirectional associativitey lets you detail sheet files with associative dimensions so that, when you change the model or the associated dimension, the respective dimension or model changes accordingly.

AccuDraw and SmartLine productivity tools that define easy data input.

Designed for the Way Workgroups Work Today.

MicroStation 95 excels in a workgroup environment. Reference files increase coordination by letting design teams and members of different disciplines share design information directly. Reference files are read-only attachments of other vector or raster files to the file you are working on (your active file). Up to 255 files can be attached as reference files to your active design file. A design can even be referenced to itself. You can define an area to clip a reference file, displaying only the contents inside the clipping boundary, or mask areas you dont want to see. And clip boundaries can be rectangular or any polygon you create for a particular case. Attached reference files can be moved, scaled, rotated, and warped (raster only), and elements in vector reference files can be snapped to and Use drawing compositi copied to the active file. You can combine vector and raster information in quickly lay out d a hybrid design, but keep raster information in its most efficient form. Because MicroStation 95 is file-based rather than memory-based, users have continuous access to design data, which is stored instantaneously as modifications are made, enabling the members of your design team to work on the same project and reference each others work over a network in real time. Cells are user-created graphic symbols and can be stored in special files called cell libraries, making them easy to find and available simultaneously to all users on a network. The Cells settings box provides a thumbnail view of each cell in the library, making it easy to choose the right cells. Furthermore, the Cell Selector utility lets you select and place cells from a customizable icon-based palette. Design files, cell libraries, and various symbology resource files share a common file format across hardware platforms, as well as among the MicroStation 95 product range. This ensures that other Efficient vector- and raster-based Bentley products, including MicroStation GeoGraphics, reference files increase inter-discipline MicroStation Modeler, MicroStation Review, MicroStation productivity through better coordination Masterpiece, MicroStation PowerDraft, and MicroStation among workgroup members. TeamMateas well as the MicroStation PowerToolsall work well together. This consistency in product architecture lets you leverage your investment in MicroStation 95 and benefit from its use throughout your enterprise. Concurrent licensing through Bentley lets you pool your MicroStation 95 resources across a network, simplifying installation and optimizing software use.

Getting Designs to PaperSimply.

MicroStation 95s commonsense approach to plotting offers a new and improved way to easily control resymbolization and the plotting priority of design data through easy-to-create-and-edit pen tables. You can also substitute text strings, ignore certain elements, or call external MicroStation BASIC functions for additional resymbolization. MicroStation 95 supports many standard output devices and incorporates features like a non-modal plot dialog (you can leave it open as you work), intuitive plot controls, an integrated Plot Preview, and more.

Easy Integration of Intelligence with Designs.

Non-graphic attribute information can be associated to graphic elements in a design. Database linkages are particularly useful in geographic information systems (GIS), facilities management, and bills-of-material generation. Attribute information can be stored externally in various Xbase, Oracle, and Informix database managers. Records can be added, deleted, and modified directly from the MicroStation 95 database server, which has a common interface across all supported database products. Database records that are associated to elements in reference files can also be reviewed and updated. Non-graphic information can also be stored as Tag Data within the reference file techniques to design file. Tags can be grouped into sets and attached to graphical oduction drawings. elements, including primitive elements like lines and text as well as complex elements like cells. Database and tag attribute information can be displayed in the design and automatically updated as non-graphic information is changed. You can generate reports through report templates and user-defined SQL queries.

Powerful 3D Tools Add Another Dimension to Designs.

MicroStation 95s 3D environment offers a comprehensive set of generation and modification tools for surface modeling and curves. Primitive and derived surfaces are stored as Non-Uniform Rational BSplines (NURBS), the most accurate method of representing complex surface information. MicroStation 95 gives you tools to create derived surfaces, general surfaces, space curves, offset surfaces, network surfaces, and cubic splines. MicroStation 95s surface modeling tools are complemented by a solid modeling product, MicroStation Modeler. MicroStation Modeler is based on industry-standard solid modeling technology called ACIS , and is seamlessly integrated into MicroStation 95 through the MicroStation Development Language (MDL).

Add Realism to Visualization and Presentations.

Photorealistic rendering tools combine with MicroStation 95s 3D abilities to provide a unique design medium in one product. Complex photorealistic images and keyframe animations can be generated simply and quickly without MicroStation 95s commonsense approach to having to leave the MicroStation 95 environment. You can plotting offers a new and improved way to define perspective by using a camera metaphor. Several simply get design to paper. rendering methods are available for displaying shaded representations of your 3D model, including hidden line, constant (faceted), smooth (Gouraud) and photorealistic Phong rendering. Patterns and textures can be mapped to model surfaces to heighten realism, and lighting can be defined to display shadows, providing just the right finishing touch. High-resolution, anti-aliased images can easily be output to a variety of industry-standard 24-bit raster formats.

MicroStation 95s visualization tools can be enhanced with MicroStation Masterpiece. MicroStation Masterpiece provides raytracing with true transparency, reflections, refraction and colored shadows as well as an image library CD, environment mapping, the ability to process multiple saved images from multiple design files in batch mode, and more. Animation Producer combines keyframing with hierarchical and parametric motion control. Like other MicroStation products from Bentley, it is seamlessly integrated into MicroStation 95 through MDL.

Easily Share Design Data.

MicroStation 95 can import and export various vector MicroStations 3D and visualization tools formats such as DWG, DXF, IGES and CGM, to give you the freedom to create and visualize facilitate sharing design data. User-defined settings, your most demanding design projects. translation tables and rules developed using MicroStation BASIC help to ensure accurate results. An API is also delivered to allow certain customizations to the applications for site-specific needs. To assist former users of AutoCAD, MicroStation 95 provides an AutoCAD Transition Workspace, including a familiar user interface and comparative Help file. The workspace eases the transition for users migrating from AutoCAD to MicroStation 95, flattening the learning curve and speeding productivity. MicroStation 95 comes with an archive utility that lets you find or distribute various files associated with a specific design file. This utility will operate on various resources (or classes of files) to be collected for distribution to other project groups, clients or subcontractors, or to be archived. You can even add your own class of files. You can create a compressed archive file, a list file, or copy the classes of files that you can select to be archived to an area on a network. The same utility can also be used to unarchive the data regardless of the platform on which the data was archived. MicroStation 95s Archive The Tools to Create Your Own MicroStation 95. utility lets you find, archive, distribute, and unarchive The MicroStation Development Language (MDL) is a complete various files that are associated professional development environment that lets applications as well as with a design. developers take full advantage of the power of MicroStation 95. MDL can be used for simple utilities, customized commands, or sophisticated commercial applications for vertical markets. Consistent product architecture based on MDL ensures that all MicroStation 95 products and applications share a consistent user interface and work in a similar manner. MDL applications are almost indistinguishable from MicroStation 95 and, once written and compiled, will run with MicroStation 95 on any supported platform. MDL development tools such as a C compiler, linker, librarian, debugger and a make program, as well as a resource manager and access to thousands of functions and variables, are included with MicroStation 95providing you with what you need to develop professional-level MicroStation 95 applications.

MicroStation 95 Opens Windows for You.

Microsoft offers a variety of Windows operating systems for MicroStation 95 users. Windows 95, Windows NT, Windows 3.1x, and Windows for Workgroups provide familiar environments as well as robust interoperability between other Windows applications and MicroStation 95. The easy-to-learn-and-use Windows interface can be selected as a preference on any MicroStation 95 platform, even the DOS version. MicroStation 95 for Windows supports the Windows Clipboard, System Printer, and various device drivers and peer-to-peer networking. Using Dynamic Data Exchange (DDE) technology, you can share data with other Windows applications. Linked text can be pasted into MicroStation 95 and edited from a word processor. Vector or bitmapped graphics can be copied from MicroStation 95 and pasted into a word processor or desktop publishing package for technical illustration and proposal generation. You can even drive MicroStation 95 from within a spreadsheet application by issuing MicroStation 95 commands or Visual Basic for Applications. Several parts of MicroStation 95like the display logic and OLE Automation, are multi-threaded to take advantage of machines running Windows 95 and Windows NT, which are scalable, multitasking, 32-bit operating systemsideal for MicroStation 95s concurrent engineering, workgroup architecture. MicroStation 95 also supports most of the more popular databases that are accessible through ODBC (including Access, Oracle 6/7, dBASE IV, SQL Server, among others.) If you use two screens, MicroStation 95 can display an application window on each, making its dual-screen display the same under Windows, DOS, UNIX, and the Apple operating systems.

Make the Most of Your Resources.

PCs are the most popular desktop systems for MicroStation 95. The following are the minimum and recommended configurations for MicroStation 95 PC:  Hardware requirements: Intel-compatible PCs running DOS Intel-compatible PCs running Microsoft Windows 3.1x, Windows 95 or Windows NT Intel-compatible PCs running IBM OS/2 Warp PowerPC or DEC Alpha AXP PCs running Microsoft Windows NT  80386 (with a math co-processor) or 80486DX or Pentium, DEC Alpha processor or PowerPC  8 MB min. RAM; 16 MB rec. (DOS)  16 MB min. RAM; 24 MB rec. (Intel compatible Windows 3.1x/95/NT or IBM OS/2 Warp)  24 MB min. RAM; 32 MB recommended (PowerPC or DEC Alpha Windows NT)  200 MB min. hard disk (typical installation: 50 MB)  Input device: mouse or tablet (tablet on Windows 3.1x/95/NT requires vendor-supplied WINTAB driver)  Supported graphics card (256 or more color card recommended for rendering)  Dual screen graphics supported (Windows 3.1x/95/NT and OS/2 require vendor-supplied drivers) MicroStation gives you all the power of the CAD technology leader on the most popular desktop workstations.

About Bentley
Bentley Systems, Inc., is the leader in professional computer-aided design products and services to engineering organizations where CAD is mission-critical. The companys MicroStation product range is relied upon by over 200,000 professional users and over 600 commercial application developers worldwide in the architecture/engineering/construction (AEC), geographic information systems (GIS), and mechanical design markets. Founded in 1984, Bentley has now become one of the worlds fastest-growing software companies. Bentley products include MicroStation 95, comprehensive CAD software for the design and engineering professional; MicroStation PowerDraft, high-speed drafting software for professionals; MicroStation Modeler, a parametric, solid modeling product; MicroStation Masterpiece, engineering visualization software for raytrace rendering and animation; MicroStation Review, easy-to-use viewing and redlining software; MicroStation Field, a Microsoft Windows-based application for mobile access to maps and technical drawings; MicroStation GeoGraphics, an end-user CAD/GIS tool and development platform for new CAD/GIS products; MicroStation TeamMate, a drawing management system; and MicroStation PowerTools, a series of focused drafting tools for MicroStation 95 and MicroStation PowerDraft.

The MicroStation Comprehensive Support Program (MicroStationCSP)

Bentleys MicroStation products put you at the forefront of todays technology. MicroStationCSPSM will keep you there. As a MicroStationCSP subscriber, you get all product updates and upgrades as soon as they are released, top-priority telephone technical support, productivity utilities and enhancements, training materials, The Client Server newsletter, the right to swap from one platform to another free of charge, and much more. MicroStationCSP will ensure the maximum return on your computer-aided design investment.

The Class of 95
The entire MicroStation range of products is getting a major productivity upgrade. The MicroStation Class of 95 uses technology that dramatically increases user productivity and readies user environments for MicroStation OpenSpace, the sector-specific integration environments from Bentley.
For more information on the MicroStation family of products and services, please contact Bentley. U.S. Headquarters: Bentley Systems, Incorporated 690 Pennsylvania Drive Exton, PA 19341 Phone: (610) 458-5000 (800) BENTLEY Fax: (610) 458-1060 Electronic Communications: WWW: http://www.bentley.com/ E-mail: family@bentley.com CompuServe: GO MSTATION America Online: Keyword MSTATION Bentley FaxBack: 1-610-458-6485
MicroStation is a registered trademark; AccuDraw, Bentley, MicroStation Field, MicroStation GeoGraphics, MicroStation Masterpiece, MicroStation Modeler, MicroStation PowerDraft, MicroStation Review, MicroStation TeamMate, MDL, OpenSpace and SmartLine are trademarks; and MicroStationCSP is a service mark of Bentley Systems, Incorporated. Windows is a registered trademark and Windows NT is trademark of Microsoft Corporation. Macintosh is a registered trademark and Mac and Power Macintosh are trademarks of Apple Computers, Inc. ACIS is a registered trademark of Spatial Technology, Inc. All other brands and product names are trademarks of their respective owners. 1995 Bentley Systems, Incorporated. Bentley Systems, Inc. believes the information in this publication is accurate as of its publication date. The information is subject to change without notice. *patent pending.
BAA00083A-1/0001 10/95

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